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25 YEARS IN REVIEWOF THE BEIJINGPLATFORM FOR
ACTIONContributions of the Platform of independent
expert mechanisms on the elimination of
discrimination and violence against women
(EDVAW Platform) towards its implementation
Prepared by the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights N Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causewith the Offff iff ce of the High Commissioner foff r Human Righ
UN Working Group ondiscrimination against
women and girls(WGDAW)
CEDAW
UN Special Rapporteur on violenceagainst women, its causes and
consequences (SRVAW)
UN Committee on theElimination of
Discrimination againstWomen (CEDAW)
Group of Experts on Actionagainst Violence againstWomen and Domestic
Violence (GREVIO)
African Commission on Humanand Peoples’ Rights SpecialRapporteur on the Rights of
Women in Africa (A-SRWHR)
Committee of Experts of the Follow-upMechanism to the Belém
do Pará Convention (MESECVI)
Inter-American Commission onHuman Rights Rapporteur on the
Rights of Women (IA-RWHR)
Available online at: ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Women/SR/Booklet_BPA.pdf
Table of Contents
I. Introduction: The formation of a dynamic relationship......................1
II. Efforts to establish a Platform of independent expert mechanisms on
the elimination of discrimination and violence against women (EDVAW
Platform) ……………………………………………………..………..4
III. Contributions by independent expert mechanisms on the
implementation of the BPA....................................................................8
A. UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women
(SRVAW)…….……...…………………………….……………..........8
B. UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against
Women (CEDAW) ..............................................................................13
C. UN Working Group on discrimination against women and girls
(WGDAW)...........................................................................................18
D. Committee of Experts of the Follow-up Mechanism to the Belém
do Pará Convention (MESECVI)………………………… ……….....22
E. Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and
Domestic Violence (GREVIO)………………………………...…….29
F. African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights Special
Rapporteur on the Rights of Women in Africa (A-SRWHR)……...….34
G. Inter-American Commission on Human Rights Rapporteur on the
Rights of Women (IA-RWHR) ……………………………………....39
IV. Conclusion………………………………………………..............43
1
Introduction:
the formation of a dynamic relationship
At the time of the Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing in
1995, only the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW, adopted in 1979 as a legally
binding instrument) and the UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence
against Women (DEVAW, of 1993) provided a global legal gender
framework that was used for and is reflected in the Beijing Declaration and
Platform for Action. At the regional level, the Inter-American Convention on
the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence against Women
(Convention of Belém do Pará) had been adopted in 1994.
Only two UN and one regional independent expert monitoring
mechanisms on women’s human rights were in place. The first was the
UN CEDAW Committee, established to monitor the implementation of the
CEDAW Convention,. The Committee commenced its activities in 1982, and
by the time the Beijing Conference took place, it had already adopted its
General Recommendation No. 19 on violence against women, in 1992.
The mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its
causes and consequences (SRVAW) had just been created, in 1994, as the
first expert mechanism at the UN level to specifically recommend measures
on the elimination of violence against women, its causes and
consequences.
In the same year, 1994, the first regional expert mechanism was created, as
the Inter-American Commission established the mandate of the
Rapporteurship on the Rights of Women (IA-RWHR).
The adoption of the Beijing Declaration and the Platform for Action in 1995
was an important step in developing a comprehensive international policy
framework on women's human rights. The Beijing Platform for Action
included 12 critical areas of concern including women’s human rights and
violence against women.
The Beijing Platform for Action entrusted the CEDAW Committee with
monitoring its implementation by explicitly calling upon all States to report
to it.
2
The Beijing Platform for Action also urged States to “cooperate with and
assist the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on
violence against women in the performance of her mandate and furnish
all information requested” and to “renew the mandate of the Special
Rapporteur on violence against women when her term ends in 1997 and,
if warranted, to update and strengthen it.”
Since the Beijing Conference, the implementation of the Beijing
Declaration and the Platform for Action have been assessed by the UN
Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) each year and through a
review process carried out every five years, reaffirming States’
commitment to its full implementation.
In the time since the Conference, the international framework on women’s
human rights was strengthened by the adoption of the Optional Protocol to
the CEDAW Convention, which established complaint and inquiry
mechanisms. The Protocol was adopted in 1999 and entered into force in
December 2000.
The adoption of the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (SCR1325) on
Women, Peace and Security, in October 2000, and its subsequent resolutions
provided an additional important framework on women, peace and security
related to conflict situations.
Another important step was the establishment of another UN expert
mechanism dedicated to women’s rights, namely the United Nations Working
Group on discrimination against women and girls (WGDAW), set up by the
UN Human Rights Council in 2010.
The new global development agenda, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, integrated the achievement of gender equality and the
empowerment of all women and girls as standalone Goal No 5, and for the
first time, in its targets 5.1 and 5.2, focus was placed on the elimination of all
forms of discrimination and violence against women and girls in the public
and private spheres.
At the regional level, the Committee of Experts of the Follow-up
Mechanism to the Belém do Pará Convention was established in 2004. The
mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Women in Africa was
established in 1998, while in 2011 the Protocol to the African Charter on
Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo
Protocol) was adopted. In 2011, the Convention on Preventing and
Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (the Istanbul
Convention) was adopted, while its Group of Experts on Action against
Seven independent
expert mechanisms:
SRVAW; CEDAW;
WGDAW; MESECVI;
GREVIO; A SRWHR;
IA RWHR
3
Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO) held its first
session in 2015.
As of 2020, there are seven UN and regional independent women’s human
rights expert mechanisms mandated to address discrimination and gender
based violence against women and girls:
A. UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women (SRVAW)
B. UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
(CEDAW)
C. UN Working Group on discrimination against women and girls (WGDAW)
D. Committee of Experts of the Follow-up Mechanism to the Belém do Pará
Convention (MESECVI)
E. Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic
Violence (GREVIO)
F. African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights Special Rapporteur on
the Rights of Women in Africa (A SRWHR)
G. Inter-American Commission on Human Rights Rapporteur on the Rights of
Women (IA RWHR)
These independent expert mechanisms are entrusted with monitoring and
supporting the implementation of States’ commitments under the global and
regional women's human rights frameworks, including the Beijing Platform
of Action, the 2030 Agenda, and UN and regional instruments on
women’s rights. These mechanisms support and complement each other
in these efforts for implementation through a dynamic and complex
relationship.
Prepared by the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its
causes and consequences, Dubravka Šimonović; with the support of the
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
4
II. Efforts to establish the Platform of
independent expert mechanisms on
discrimination and violence and against
women (EDVAW Platform)
The Special Rapporteur on violence against women, Dubravka Šimonović,
in her first vision setting report to the Human Rights Council (A/HRC/32/42
and Corr.1) in 2016, on the future role of the mandate, detected
fragmentation of and disconnection between the implementation of global
agendas and instruments. She identified these as obstacles to accelerating the
implementation of the human rights framework on discrimination and
violence against women, and called for stronger cooperation between
independent UN and regional mechanisms dealing with women’s rights,
discrimination and violence against women.
In an effort to reduce this disconnect, the Special Rapporteur has lead an
initiative to convene all the seven UN and regional independent expert
mechanisms on the elimination of discrimination and violence against
women with the objective of amplifying their voices, magnifying their work
and strengthening advocacy and messaging.
The EDVAW Platform is composed by all seven UN and regional
independent women’s human rights expert mechanisms mandated to
address discrimination and gender-based violence against women and girls.1
Activities of the Platform from 2018 to 2020
Since its creation, the Platform has accomplished the following:2
Meetings and events:
Panel "A journey to strengthen cooperation between the
international and regional mechanisms on women's rights", 61st session
of the Commission on the Status of Women, March 2017 (flyer)
1 See full list on page 3. 2 More information on each of the Platforms activities can be found at:
https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Women/SR/Platforms_meetings_and_statements.pdf
The Platform has brought
together independent expert
mechanisms on
discrimination and violence
against women to speak
with one voice on issues of
common concern; exchange
views emerging from their
work on challenges and
efforts to address gender-
based violence against
women; and find synergies
in advancing in the common
quest of achieving a world
free from violence against
women.
.
5
Meeting of independent global and regional experts on women's
rights and violence against women with the UN Secretary-General Antonio
Guterres, March 2017
Panel "Regional and International Mechanisms for an integral
approach to violence against women and girls", organized in Washington, DC
by MESECVI in November 2017 (concept note and video)
CSW High Level Panel on "Strengthening Cooperation between
Global and Regional Independent Mechanisms dealing with Violence
and Discrimination against Women", 62nd session of the Commission on
the Status of Women, March 2018 (flyer and concept note)
First Official Meeting: Consultation between Global and Regional
Mechanisms on Violence and Discrimination against Women, 62nd session
of the Commission on the Status of Women, March 2018 (agenda)
Expert group meeting on violence against women in politics at the
headquarters of UN Women, March 2018 (news release and SRVAW report)
Meeting of the mechanisms with UN Secretary-General, Antonio
Guterres, March 2018
Official Regional Meeting of the Platform of independent
international and regional mechanisms on violence against women and
women's rights, during the 169th session of the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights, in Boulder, Colorado, United States of
America, October 2018 (report)
Meeting with the Secretary-General of the Organization of
American States, Luis Almagro, in Washington, DC, USA, November 2018
Informal Meeting of the Platform of independent mechanisms during
the 63rd session of the Commission on the Status of Women, March 2019
Official Regional Meeting of the Platform of independent
international and regional mechanisms on violence against women and
6
women's rights hosted by the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, May 2019
(report)
Meeting of the Platform of independent international and regional
mechanisms on violence against women and women's rights under the
leadership of the UN Special Rapporteur and the African Commission on
Human and Peoples' Rights Special Rapporteur on Rights of Women in
Africa and in collaboration with the Secretariat of Gender Is My Agenda
Campaign (GIMAC) and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for
Human Rights for Eastern Africa (EARO)
Meeting of the Platform of independent international and regional
mechanisms on violence against women and women's rights during the 64th
session of the Commission on the Status of Women, March 2020
Statements:
Joint statement by independent UN and regional women's human
rights mechanisms on the consideration of Sustainable Development Goal 5
by the High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (July 2017)
(statement)
End the global epidemic of femicide (*NiUnaMenos) and support
women speaking up against violence against women (*MeToo) (November
2018) (statement)
Independent women human rights mechanisms are part of the
solution to "push back the pushbacks and keep pushing back" (March 2019)
(statement)
Intimate partner violence against women is an essential factor in the
determination of child custody, say women's rights experts (May 2019)
(statement)
Violence and harassment against women and girls in the world of
work is a human rights violation, say independent human rights mechanisms
on violence against women and women's rights (May 2019) (statement)
Absence of consent must become the global standard for definition of
rape, say experts (November 2019) (press release and statement)
Elimination of discrimination and violence against women and girls,
including its root causes, must be integrated in all efforts to silence the guns
before, during and after conflict (February 2020) (press release and
statement)
7
On 31 May 2019, the Platform sent letters to the UN Secretary-General and
to each of the regional organizations’ Heads requesting support for the future
of the Platform.
The Secretary-General of the Council of Europe replied by expressing his
support for coordination between international and regional mechanisms, and
noted that the possibility of holding meetings, hosted, by each mechanism is
a way to exchange experiences and address the different realities on the
ground in turn.
Given the role played by all seven independent expert mechanisms on
discrimination and violence against women in the implementation of the
Beijing Platform of Action, this publication presents the specific contribution
provided by each of them to it.
Prepared by the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its
causes and consequences, Dubravka Šimonović; with the support of the
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
8
III. Contributions by independent
expert mechanisms on the
implementation of the BPA
A. UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its
causes and consequences (SRVAW)
The mandate of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against
women, its causes and consequences (SRVAW) was established on 4 March
1994 by UN Commission on Human Rights Resolution 1994/45 on the
question of integrating the rights of women into the human rights
mechanisms of the United Nations and the elimination of violence against
women. In 2019, the mandate commemorated its 25th Anniversary and
published the report “Twenty-five years of the mandate of the Special
Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences: an
analysis of its evolution, the current challenges and the way forward –
contribution to the 25-year review of the Beijing Declaration and Platform
for Action” (A/HRC/41/42).
Mandate
The Commission on Human Rights tasked the SRVAW with ensuring that
violence against women was integrated into the United Nations human rights
framework and its mechanisms, as well as seek and receive information on
violence against women, its causes and consequences from Governments,
treaty bodies and relevant stakeholders; and to respond effectively to such
information by recommending measures, ways and means at the local,
national, regional and international levels to eliminate all forms of violence
against women and its causes, and to remedy its consequences.
Contribution of the SRVAW to the implementation of the Beijing Platform
for Action
The Beijing Platform for Action also urged States to “cooperate with and
assist the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on
violence against women in the performance of her mandate and furnish
all information requested” and to “renew the mandate of the Special
Rapporteur on violence against women when her term ends in 1997 and,
if warranted, to update and strengthen it.”
9
Throughout its twenty-six years of thematic and country based work, the
mandate of the SRVAW has focused on violence against women, which is a
specific area of concern of the Beijing Platform for Action. By addressing the
issue of violence as a form of discrimination against women, the SRVAW
has contributed to standard-setting work on violence against women and the
interpretation of States obligations “within the framework of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights and all other international human rights
instruments, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women and the Declaration on the Elimination of
Violence against Women”.
During its first ten years, following the adoption of the Beijing Platform for
Action, the mandate was involved in pioneering work in relation to standard
setting on all forms of violence against women, including the development of
a framework for model legislation on domestic violence
(E/CN.4/1996/53/Add.2). During that time, the issue of violence against
women was new on the human rights agenda, and the focus was primarily on
encouraging States to accept international standards, pass appropriate
legislation and establish mechanisms to combat violence against women.
Over the following 15 years, the mandate focused on strategies for a more
effective implementation of the international and regional commitments in
this area and contributed to its further understanding. The SRVAW mandate
was expanded to present reports to the General Assembly and oral reports to
the Commission on the Status of Women since 2008, becoming more visible.
Important work was achieved through consultations with civil society
organizations.
Some of the most important contributions of the mandate of the SRVAW
towards the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action are the
following:
Violence against women and due diligence
The SRVAW mandate has made significant progress in elaborating the State
due diligence obligation on preventing and combating violence against
women and girls, within the framework of all relevant international and
regional instruments.
The mandate has developed standards regarding the concept of due diligence
as set out by the 1993 Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against
Women as well as other international instruments. In her report to the Human
Rights Commission on developing effective implementation of international
norms to end violence against women (E/CN.4/2004/66),, the Special
Rapporteur noted that prevention is an integral part of the State’s due
10
diligence obligation: “the application of due diligence standard, to date, has
tended to be State-centric and limited to responding to violence when it
occurs, largely neglecting the obligation to prevent and compensate and the
responsibility of non-State actors.”3 In following reports, the mandate has
further elaborated on the due diligence obligation in the context of specific
manifestations of violence and discrimination against women, including
obligations to prevent, investigate and punish such acts by individuals, State
agents and private companies.
Femicide prevention watch initiative
In response to the global phenomena of femicide or gender-related killings
and violence against women, the SRVAW started the Femicide prevention
initiative and called for the establishment of the “femicide prevention watch”
at the global, national and regional levels. In her 2016 report to the General
Assembly (A/71/398), the SRVAW outlined the modalities required for the
establishment of such a preventative mechanism. In calling upon all States to
establish a femicide watch or a “gender-related killing of women watch”, the
SRVAW proposed that data on the number of femicides should be published
annually, on 25 November, along with information concerning the
prosecution and punishment of perpetrators. She also proposed the collection
of comparable data on: i) intimate partner femicide; ii) family related
femicide based on the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim/s;
and iii) all other femicides based on the country context.4 She also called for
a flexible model for the establishment of a national femicide watch or
observatory on violence against women that should analyse cases in order to
determine national shortcomings and focus on the prevention of such cases.5
Since the above-mentioned report of the SRVAW, important progress has
been made in developing national observatories and the collection of data on
gender related killings, while much remains to be done.
Increased cooperation between the SRVAW the CEDAW Committee in
elaboration of the CEDAW GR 35 and its implementation
Upon an invitation of the CEDAW Committee, the SRVAW participated in
the elaboration of General Recommendation No. 35 (2017) on gender-based
violence against women, updating General Recommendation No. 19. This
was the first example of a formal collaboration between a treaty body and a
special procedure mandate holder.
3 E/CN.4/2006/61, p. 2, available at: https://undocs.org/E/CN.4/2006/61 4 A/71/398, para. 9, available at: https://undocs.org/A/71/398 5 Idem, para. 83 (a)
11
In General recommendation No. 35, the CEDAW Committee acknowledged
the Special Rapporteur’s contribution to the development of this
recommendation, and recognized that the prohibition of gender-based
violence against women had evolved into a principle of customary
international law and, as such, was binding on all States. It also provided an
updated road map for preventing and combating violence against women.
On 8 November 2018, the Special Rapporteur and the CEDAW Committee
adopted a framework of cooperation6 that envisages the development of a
joint programme of work to promote and support the implementation of
General Recommendation 35, through the development of guidelines, tools
and/or indicators, as well as strategies to update national action plans on
violence against women.
New manifestations of violence against women
In her most recent thematic reports, the SRVAW has been exploring new
manifestations of violence against women. The Special Rapporteur noted
with concern the increase in online violence against women and violence
facilitated by information and communications technology (ICT). She stated
that the principle that human rights and women’s rights protected offline
must also be protected online should fully integrate the right to live free from
emerging forms of online and ICT-facilitated violence against women, while
respecting the right to freedom of expression and the right to privacy and data
protection. 7
As a follow up to the aforementioned report, the Special Rapporteur visited
Silicon Valley in October 2018 with the aim of engaging with the private
sector in order to encourage the development of coordinated strategies
between States and tech companies to incorporate human rights standards
within their policies to prevent online violence against women and girls. In
March 2019, within the margins of the Committee on the Status of Women,
the Special Rapporteur organized an event, in conjunction with Facebook, on
the issue of online violence against women and girls and non-consensual
distribution of intimate images.
The SRVAW also analysed the issue of mistreatment and violence against
women in reproductive health services with a focus on childbirth and
obstetric violence. After reviewing the manifestations and root causes of this
6 Available at:
https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Women/SR/SRVAW_CEDAW_FrameworkCoopera
tion.pdf 7 A/HRC/38/47, available at: https://undocs.org/en/A/HRC/38/47
12
violence from a human rights perspective, the Special Rapporteur recalled
States’ obligation to respect, protect and fulfil women’s human rights,
including the right to highest standard attainable of physical and mental
health during reproductive services and childbirth, free from mistreatment
and gender-based violence.8
Another emerging issue addressed by the mandate is that of violence against
women in politics. The Special Rapporteur described the widespread and
systematic nature of this type of violence, and outlined its chilling impact on
the political ambition of young women, with inter-generational consequences
for the full realization of their political rights and impacts on society as a
whole. She urged States to meet their due diligence obligations to prevent,
investigate and punish acts of violence against women, whether they are
perpetrated by State or non-State actors. 9
Prepared by the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its
causes and consequences, Dubravka Šimonović; with the support of the
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
8 A/74/137, available at: https://undocs.org/A/74/137 9 A/73/301, available at: https://undocs.org/A/73/301
13
B. UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination
against Women (CEDAW)
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against
Women (CEDAW) was adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly. The
Convention entered into force in 1981 and as of 2019 it had been ratified by
189 countries.10 42 countries ratified the CEDAW Convention after the
Beijing conference and the adoption of the Beijing Platform of Action in
1995, which affirmed the importance of the full adherence to the Convention
and the fulfilment of women’s human rights in all areas of the Platform.
Mandate
According to Article 17 of the Convention, the CEDAW Committee is
comprised of 23 independent experts mandated to assess the progress made
in the implementation of the Convention. The experts are elected by States
Parties from among their nationals and serve in their personal capacity, with
consideration being given to equitable geographical distribution and to the
representation of the different forms of civilization as well as the principal
legal systems. The CEDAW Committee currently meets three times a year
for about three weeks to monitor the implementation of the Convention.
The Committee has an Optional Protocol (OP) that entered into force in
2000, comprising the Communications and Enquiries procedures. These
operate as accountability systems by enabling complaints to be brought
against states parties which have ratified the protocol and accepted explicitly
these procedures for rights violations under the Convention subject to
admissibility criteria. Under the Communication procedure, complaints may
be brought on behalf of individuals or groups of individuals submitting
claims of violations of rights protected under the Convention. With the
inquiry procedure, the Committee may initiate inquiries into complaints of
grave or systematic violations of women’s rights. The procedure under the
OP CEDAW is a quasi-judicial procedure in which the Committee
determines whether the State has failed to fulfil its obligations under
CEDAW.
The Committee elaborates and adopts general recommendations on specific
articles of the Convention, themes or issues based on the examination of
reports and information received from States parties The Committee as of
10 Available at: https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-
8&chapter=4&clang=_en
The Committee’s work is
undertaken through the
consideration of States
parties’ reports, conducting
constructive dialogue with
governments, adoption of
concluding observations and
recommendations, and the
monitoring of the
implementation of the
concluding observations and
recommendations through
the follow-up procedure.
14
December 2019 has adopted 37 General Recommendations, interpreting the
nature and scope of States parties’ obligations under the Convention.
The CEDAW Committee’s contribution to the implementation of the
Beijing Platform for Action
All areas of the Beijing Platform for Action are addressed by the work of the
CEDAW. There is a correspondence between the Critical Areas of Concern
on the one hand, and the Convention’s articles and general recommendations
on the other. Apart from the crosscutting nature of some of the areas of
concern such as violence and poverty, others are dealt with in the
Convention in the articles or General recommendations referred to in
parenthesis: Educational (10), Health (12), Violence (5). Armed Conflict
(GR 30, 32), Economic Structures (13), decision-making (7, 8),
Mechanisms to promote the advancement of women (3), Lack of
Awareness of women’s rights (cross-cutting), mass media (5 -
stereotypes), Environment (GR 37), Girl Child (cross-cutting).
Reporting and Follow-Up
Since the entry into force of the Convention and the establishment of the
Committee, CEDAW has reviewed hundreds of State party reports.
Important constitutional, legislative and administrative reforms have been
adopted by many state parties in response to CEDAW recommendations to
eliminate discrimination against women as well as to prevent and address
gender-based violence against women.11 Under the follow-up procedure
applied by the Committee, the latter selects four paragraphs in the
Concluding Observations as follow up, to be reported on by the respective
state within two years. The procedure was evaluated in 2016, and again in
November 2019. It showed that 6% of follow-up recommendations had been
implemented, 10% had been substantially implemented, and 47% had been
partially implemented. The compliance level of these three categories totalled
62 %. This represented an improvement of 7% over the 55% for the
corresponding categories recorded in the 2016 evaluation. The issues
identified by the Committee as follow-up items remain the same: violence
against women leads at 36.2%. Other manifestations of violence against
women include stereotypes and harmful practices (4.7%) and trafficking and
exploitation of prostitution (1.3%).
11 Statement marking 40th Anniversary of CEDAW, 18 Dec. 2019. Available at:
https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=25443&LangID=
E
15
The Optional Protocol
The entry into force of the Optional Protocol in 2000 –marking its 20th
year in 2020, and currently ratified by 113 states– is an important step in
protecting women against gender-based discrimination and violence as it
strengthened the international framework to confront violence against
women. As of November 2019, 149 cases had been registered out of which
36 final decisions were reached. Violations were found in 31 of these cases.
Fifty-five cases were found inadmissible, 12 were discontinued and 46 are
pending.
In the Committee’s landmark Communication case No. 47/ 2012, Gonzales
Carreno v. Spain, concerning a victim of physical and psychological violence
by her husband, the Supreme Court of Spain endorsed the Committee’s
finding of a violation of the Convention and asked the Spanish authorities to
pay compensation of 600,000 Euro. The compensation, the largest ever paid
to date in the framework of remedies provided in individual cases submitted
to UN treaty bodies, has been paid.
Since the inquiry procedure came into force, the Committee has adopted and
subsequently published five inquiry reports finding grave or systematic
violations of rights enshrined in the Convention.
Women and Girls’ Right to Education
Regarding women’s education, considerable progress has been made in
ensuring girls’ and women’s equal access to education also thanks to the
regular monitoring and special focus of the Committee on this important
theme. In 2017, CEDAW also adopted the comprehensive General
Recommendation No. 36 on the right of girls and women to education.
Standard setting on violence against women
Protection from GBV against women as an explicit state due
diligence obligation
The Convention’s obligation requires states to prevent acts of violence
against women, protect the victims/survivors, prosecute and investigate
incidents of violence, by ensuring multi-sectoral coordination, punish the
perpetrators, provide redress to the victim/survivors for the harm suffered in
the form of compensation, and provide reparation.12
12 CEDAW General Recommendation No. 35, available at: https://bit.ly/2RKc8Gq
16
For example, in the case Goekce v. Austria (Communication No. 5/ 2005),
the Committee concluded that the police knew or should have known that the
victim was in serious danger and should have treated her last call as an
emergency. Furthermore, the Public Prosecutor should have responded to the
request by the police to detain the aggressor.13
In protecting women from gender-based violence,
intersectionality should be recognized and addressed
Women’s experience of violence is shaped by factors such as their race,
colour, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property,
marital status, sexual orientation, HIV/AIDS status, migrant or refugee status,
age, or disability. Consequently, interventions should include targeted
measures for particular groups of women, as appropriate.14
This was illustrated in the case Isatou Jallow v. Bulgaria, Communication
32/2011. I.J. The plaintiff, who could not speak or write Bulgarian, moved
from Gambia to Bulgaria after her marriage to a Bulgarian national. He
subjected her and her daughter to physical, psychological and sexual
violence. The Committee found failure of the state to investigate allegations
of domestic violence, failure to take violence allegations into account when
issuing an emergency protection order and awarding temporary custody of
the child to the father, gender stereotyping and lack of access to justice and
translation services as a migrant woman, and unequal rights within marriage
and family relations.
13 Examples of case law under CEDAW OP are, among others, Isatou Jallow v. Bulgaria,
Communication No. 32/2012, ; V.K. v. Bulgaria, Communication No. 20/2008, UN Doc.
CEDAW/C/49/D/20/2008 (2011) (CEDAW); Karen Tayag Vertido v. The Philippines,
Communication No. 18/2008, UN Doc. CEDAW/C/46/D/18/2008 (2010) (CEDAW); Fatma
Yildirim v. Austria, Communication No. 6/2005, UN Doc. CEDAW/C/39/D/6/2005 (2007)
(CEDAW); Şahide Goekce v. Austria, Communication No. 5/2005, UN Doc.
CEDAW/C/39/D/5/2005 (2007) (CEDAW); A.T. v. Hungary, Communication No. 2/2003. 14 See CEDAW General Recommendation No. 28. Intersectionality is a basic concept for
understanding the scope of the general obligations of States parties contained in article 2. The
discrimination of women based on sex and gender is inextricably linked with other factors that
affect women, such as race, ethnicity, religion or belief, health, status, age, class, caste and
sexual orientation and gender identity. Discrimination on the basis of sex or gender may affect
women belonging to such groups to a different degree or in different ways to men. States
parties must legally recognize such intersecting forms of discrimination and their compounded
negative impact on the women concerned and prohibit them. Also see General
Recommendations No. 33 and 35.
17
Effective protection against domestic violence involves identifying
and combating gender stereotypes, as contained in Article 5 of the
Convention.
In addition to other barriers facing women, the Committee has addressed
judicial stereotyping. Judicial stereotyping bears particular risks for women
as it is characterized by distortions of perception that violate judicial
principles of impartiality and integrity. The result is the re-victimization of
complainants and discrimination against women who seek justice, including
for violence.15
Karen Vertido v. The Philippines / Communication No. 18/ 2008/ is a
landmark rape case and R.P.B. v. The Philippines/ Communication No.
34/2011/ involved sexual harassment in the workplace. The Committee
affirmed that “….judicial stereotyping affects women’s right to a fair and just
trial” and that State party must “ensure that all criminal proceedings
involving rape and other sexual offences are conducted in an impartial and
fair manner and free from prejudices or stereotypical notions regarding the
victim’s gender, age and disability.” It also underscored that “women’s right
to a fair and just trial” and that State party must “ensure that all criminal
proceedings involving rape and other sexual offences are conducted in an
impartial and fair manner and free from prejudices or stereotypical notions
regarding the victim’s gender, age and disability.”
Prepared by Hilary Gbedemah, Chairperson of CEDAW; with the support of
the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
15 S. Cusack, Eliminating judicial stereotyping - Equal access to justice for women in gender-
based violence cases, 2014. Available at:
https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Women/WRGS/StudyGenderStereotyping.doc
18
C. UN Working Group on discrimination against women
and girls (WGDAW)
The United Nations Working Group on discrimination against women and
girls (WGDAW) was established by the Human Rights Council in September
2010, pursuant to Resolution 15/23.16 The WGDAW was created because it
was observed that – “although human rights treaty bodies and special
procedures do, to some extent, address discrimination against women within
their mandates, their attention to such discrimination is not systematic”.
In addition, in 2005, during the 10-year review of the implementation of the
Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the outcome of the twenty-
third special session of the General Assembly by the Commission on the
Status of Women, concern was expressed that legislative and regulatory
gaps, as well as lack of implementation and enforcement of legislation and
regulations, perpetuated de jure and de facto inequality and discrimination
and that, in a few cases, new laws discriminating against women had been
introduced.
Mandate
The main tasks of this mandate are:
To develop a dialogue with States, the relevant United Nations
entities, national human rights institutions, experts on different legal systems,
and civil society organizations to identify, promote and exchange views on
best practices related to the elimination of laws that discriminate against
women or are discriminatory to women in terms of implementation or impact
and, in that regard, to prepare a compendium of best practices;
To work in close coordination, in the context of the fulfilment of its
mandate, with other special procedures and subsidiary organs of the Council,
relevant United Nations entities, including the Commission on the Status of
Women and UN Women and, in particular, the Committee on the Elimination
of Discrimination against Women and other treaty bodies, within their
respective mandates, with a view to avoiding unnecessary duplication;
To submit an annual report to the Council, starting at its twentieth
session, on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice,
and on good practices in eliminating such discrimination, drawing upon the
16 The mandate was originally created as the Working Group on the Issue of Discrimination
against Women in Law and in Pratice. In June 2019, it was renewed under its current name.
See A/HRC/RES/15/23, available at: https://undocs.org/en/A/HRC/RES/15/23
19
findings of the United Nations human rights machinery and the broader
United Nations system; and
▪ To offer support to States’ initiatives to address multiple forms of
discrimination against women and girls when implementing their obligations
as State parties to relevant international human rights treaties with regard to
civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights, and related commitments,
where applicable.
The WGDAW contribution to the implementation of the Beijing Platform
for Action
The WGDAW has a strong substantive connection to the Beijing Platform for
Action. Tackling discrimination against women and girls is a key
commitment of Member States as expressed in several strategic objectives of
the Beijing Platform for Action. Furthermore, discrimination against women
and girls is a crosscutting substantive issue that relates to all 12 critical areas
of concern. In view of the broad thematic scope of its mandate, the WGDAW
had identified for its first six years of its mandate four thematic areas of
focus, namely, discrimination against women in: political and public life;
economic and social life; family and cultural life; and health and safety.
Eliminating discrimination against women in political and public life17
The WGDAW has recorded achievements in relation to women’s political
representation and challenges including discriminatory family status;
disproportionately care giving responsibilities of women in the family;
violence against women in all its forms, whether in the private of public
space; stereotypes of women’s capacities and roles; and marginalization by
political parties. The WGDAW has stressed the particular challenges faced
by women human rights defenders around the world, driven by deeply rooted
discrimination against women and stereotypes about their role in society. The
WGDAW emphasizes States’ obligations to eliminate discrimination against
women in political and public life, to fulfil women’s civil and political rights
in their interrelatedness and interdependence with other human rights, and to
provide equal opportunity and ways and means for the empowerment of
women in these areas.
17 A/HRC/23/50, available at: https://undocs.org/A/HRC/23/50
20
Eliminating discrimination against women in economic and social life18
The WGDAW has observed the prevalence of discriminatory legislation
which continues to obstruct women’s enjoyment of equal rights and access to
economic opportunity and resources and identified some of the obstacles
faced by women in this regard including wage gaps; lack of maternity
protections; the disproportionate allocation of care functions to women; and
violence against women. The WGDAW has stressed States’ obligations to
eliminate discrimination against women in economic and social life and to
provide equal opportunity and ways and means for the empowerment of
women in accordance to international human rights law.
Eliminating discrimination against women in cultural and family law19
The WGDAW has examined the ways in which the cultural construction of
gender determines the role of women and girls in the family, including
marriage. Further, the WGDAW has analysed the role of women in the
family, which is often under patriarchal control in cultures and religions, that
subjects women and girls to discrimination in a number of areas of family
life. The WGDAW notes that in some cultures and religions this is reflected
through the existence of wives ’duty of obedience, the right of husbands to
punish their wives and the non-criminalization of marital rape; and stresses
throughout its work the considerable impact of domestic violence on women.
The WGDAW recalls States obligation to adopt appropriate measures with a
view to eliminating all forms of discrimination against women and girls in
laws, cultural practices and the family, whether perpetrated by State agents or
private actors.
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health20
The WGDAW has aimed to clarify the meaning of equality in the area of
health and safety, identify discriminatory practices, expose the
instrumentalisation of women’s bodies in violation of their human dignity
and reveal the barriers to women’s autonomous, effective and affordable
access to health care. The WGDAW has stressed States ’obligations to secure
women’s rights to the highest attainable standard of health and safety,
including their underlying determinants, and women’s equal access to health-
care services, including those related to family planning, as well as their
rights to privacy, information and bodily integrity. Further, the obligation of
States ’to ensure women’s right to equal access to health-care services is
violated by neglecting women’s health needs, failing to make gender-
18 A/HRC/26/39, available at: https://undocs.org/en/A/HRC/26/39 19 A/HRC/29/40, available at: https://undocs.org/A/HRC/29/40 20 A/HRC/32/44, available at: https://undocs.org/en/A/HRC/32/44
21
sensitive health interventions, depriving women of autonomous decision-
making capacity and criminalizing or denying them access to health services
that only women require.
The WGDAW regards violence against women at the intersection of various
grounds of discrimination as crosscutting in all of its work.
Furthermore, the WGDAW pays particular attention to specific groups of
women, women belonging to minorities, rural and indigenous women, older
women, girls, including adolescents, women in conflict and post-conflict
situations, refugee and migrant women, internally displaced women and
stateless women; women with disability; LBTI+ women.
In addition, the WGDAW has focused on good and promising practices for
the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; in reasserting
women’s fundamental right to substantive equality and calling for concerted
efforts to counter rollbacks and the increasing attacks against the universality
of women’s human rights; and the main causes of women’s deprivation of
liberty. The WGDAW has managed to embrace all areas affecting women’s
lives and give a broad and comprehensive overview of the persistent and
global discrimination against women and girls. In its reports, the WGDAW
has striven to provide practical tools for States and other stakeholders to
address the major causes of and trends in discrimination against women.
While the findings and recommendations of the WGDAW thematic reports
have in some instances influenced policy dialogues and the elaboration of
laws and policies at the national level, through its country visits the
WGDAW has worked with States and other stakeholders to identify and
promote good practices and exchange views on challenges relating to the
elimination of discriminatory laws and practices.
Furthermore, the WGDAW has contributed to the reform of discriminatory
laws and policies by engaging in a dialogue with the concerned States and it
has become a respected advocate for enhancing respect of international
human rights norms through making its expert voice heard by issuing public
statements and judicial interventions.
Prepared by Meskerem Geset Techane, Chairperson of the WGDAW; with the
support of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
22
D. Committee of Experts of the Follow-up Mechanism to
the Belém do Pará Convention (MESECVI)
Mandate
MESECVI is a systematic and permanent multilateral evaluation
methodology that is based on exchange and technical cooperation between
the States Parties to the Convention and a Committee of Experts. The
MESECVI process operates through multi-lateral evaluation and follow-up
rounds:
During the Multi-lateral Evaluation Round:
The Committee of Experts prepares and circulates a set of indicators
on the measures taken by the States Party to address violence against women;
The State Party replies to the indicators, which serves as the basis for
the national report;
The Committee of Experts evaluates the responses of the States and
issues a series of recommendations to strengthen implementation of the
Convention, which completes the national reports;
These results and recommendations are then consolidated into a
Hemispheric Report.
During the Follow-up Round:
The Committee of Experts identifies and circulates a series of
progress indicators to measure the implementation of the Convention and
circulates them to the States Party;
The States Party inform on their compliance with these indicators;
A consolidated Follow-up Report is produced.
In 2004, the States Parties to the Inter-American Convention on the
Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence against Women,
(Belem do Para Convention) established a Follow-up Mechanism
(MESECVI) for the effective implementation of the Convention as a
continuous and independent evaluation process.
23
Meetings are essential to the operation of the MESECVI and provide a
necessary forum for dialogue, exchange of views, opinions, and peer
evaluation. MESECVI holds two types of meetings as part of its regular
process:
The Conference of States Party, which brings together the Competent
National Authorities and other representatives of the states that have signed
and/or ratified the Convention of Belém do Pará to discuss the national
reports and the recommendations drawn up by the Committee of Experts, to
review and adopt the Hemispheric Report, and to consider routine matters
concerning the Mechanism's operations and exchange views on the effective,
sustainable implementation of the Convention.
The meetings of the Committee of Experts, which bring together its
members to review and adopt the questionnaire to be used for each
Multilateral Evaluation Round, examine the national reports and draw up
recommendations, and discuss other conceptual and methodological
questions related to implementation of the Convention.
In addition, MESECVI occasionally sponsors other meetings of a political
and/or technical nature to discuss matters of importance regarding
implementation of the Convention.
The MESECVI contribution to the implementation of the Beijing Platform
for Action
The Belém do Pará Convention was established following the Vienna
Declaration and Program of Action, adopted by the World Conference on
Human Rights in Vienna in June 1993.
Inspired also by the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the Belém
do Pará Convention and its Follow-Up Mechanism harmonize efforts from
government officials, technical experts and civil society in order to realize the
right to live a life free of violence in Latin America.
Throughout the Latin-American and Caribbean region, the Convention and
its Follow-Up Mechanism have significantly advanced the interpretation of
violence against women as a violation of human rights, and have highlighted
the deeply held patriarchal attitudes and stereotypes relating to the social
roles and responsibilities of women and men. The persistence of these
stereotypes continue to perpetuate social norms that subordinate women.
24
The MESECVI released its Strategic Plan for 2018-2023 in which the
mechanism sets out the issues it aims to tackle in those next five years,
including: the development of indicators for tracking violence against women
in State Parties; intersectionality or multiple discriminatory factors against
women as a cross-cutting theme; education for preventing violence with the
aim of guaranteeing the right of women to be valued and educated free of
stereotyped patterns of behavior and social and cultural practices based on
concepts of inferiority or subordination; violence and women with
disabilities; indigenous women and afro-descendant women; trafficking and
disappeared women from a gender perspective and within the framework of
respect for human rights; femicide/feminicide; violence against women in
political life; and access to justice for women, in particular girls and
adolescents who have been victims of all types of violence, with special
emphasis on physical and sexual violence.
Education and training
The Committee recommendations 16 and 19 in the Second Hemispheric
Report21 reaffirm the importance of establishing ongoing training plans on
the knowledge and promotion of women’s rights within, without distinction
based on sex, social class or membership to any ethnic group. The Third
Multilateral Evaluation Round of the MESECVI focused on preventing
violence against women through education for eradicating gender
stereotypes.
Awareness-raising and training tools have also been developed, including
guides on the implementation of the Convention22 and the use of the System
of Indicators23, and over 500 people from different sectors of the region have
been trained. The MESECVI also has a "Specialization and International
Course on Public Policies and Gender Justice." A wide range of
communication tools has been developed, including a virtual data
visualization platform, a compendium of best practices, infographics, press
releases, social media campaigns and events on specific topics with a view to
raising awareness and identifying concrete actions.
21 MESECVI, 2012, Second Hemispheric Report on the Implementation of the Belém do Pará
Convention. Available at: https://www.oas.org/en/mesecvi/docs/MESECVI-
SegundoInformeHemisferico-EN.pdf 22 MESECVI, 2014. Guide to the application of the Inter-American Convention on the
Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence against Women (Belém do Pará
Convention). Available at: https://www.oas.org/en/mesecvi/docs/BdP-GuiaAplicacion-Web-
EN.pdf 23 MESECVI 2014, op. cit.
25
Health
The First Hemispheric Report on the Implementation of the Belém do Pará
Convention (2008)24, considered that the violation of sexual and reproductive
rights is a form of gender-based violence, that these rights can be grossly
violated in legislation that does not recognize or protect them, and that
women who are victims of multiple forms of discrimination have the least
effective access to sexual and reproductive health services.
Likewise, the Second Hemispheric Report25 recommended that the States
Party to the Convention adopt provisions to criminalize obstetric violence;
legalize interruption of pregnancy on therapeutic grounds; as well as
women’s access to such procedures; legalize the interruption of pregnancy
caused by rape; adopt provisions to guarantee the free distribution of
emergency contraceptives in public health services without distinctions based
on social class or membership to an ethnic group; adopt provisions to offer
emergency prophylactic treatment for HIV/AIDS and other sexually
transmitted diseases in public health services, especially for cases of sexual
violence and adopt protocols defining the treatment steps and the manner of
providing care for users.
The MESECVI’s Committee of Experts also approved the Declaration on
Violence against Women, Girls and Adolescents and their Sexual and
Reproductive Rights, (MESECVI, 2014)26.
The girl child
High rates of sexual violence and its incidence in child and adolescent
pregnancy, forced motherhood, and the absence of policies that address this
serious situation in an effective way have been a comprehensive concern for
the MESECVI and the Committee of Experts.
The severity of sexual violence against girls in early adolescence has become
more visible in the few last years, given the broad publicity throughout the
region of cases of pregnant girls who, after being victims of sexual violence,
have been forced to continue with their pregnancy due to legal prohibitions of
pregnancy interruption, lack of information about their rights, the existence
of laws that perpetuate gender stereotypes, and the absence of actionable
protocols in cases where legal abortion is permitted. The manifestation of this
24 MESECVI, 2008, First Hemispheric Report on the Implementation of the Belém do Pará
Convention). Available at: https://www.oas.org/en/mesecvi/docs/InformeHemisferico2008-
EN.pdf 25 MESECVI 2012, op. cit. 26 MESECVI, 2014. Declaration on Violence against Women, Girls and Adolescents and their
Sexual and Reproductive Rights. Available at:
https://www.oas.org/en/mesecvi/docs/DeclaracionDerechos-EN.pdf
26
kind of sexual and structural violence against girls and adolescents becomes
more complex to the extent that these early pregnancies may affect the full
development of the girls and their life projects, since they are obliged or
forced to carry these pregnancies to term.
Faced with this regional reality, in 2017, the MESECVI released a
Hemispheric Report that specifically addressed the problem of sexual
violence and child pregnancy in the State Parties to the Belém do Pará
Convention27.
The Committee of Experts considers that all pregnancy in girls younger than
14 years old should be considered non-consensual and, accordingly, a
product of sexual violence, except in cases where sexual relations take place
between peers.
Prevention of violence against women, including domestic violence
The Belém do Pará Convention Convention was the world’s first binding
international treaty exclusively focused on eliminating violence against
women. This Convention combined with other human rights instruments in
the OAS provided the framework for women’s human rights and gender
equality in the Americas and has contributed to raising awareness of the
severity of violence against women.
In 2015, the Competent Authorities of the Follow-Up Mechanism released
the Declaration on Political Harassment and Violence against Women28. In
this Declaration, the MESECVI calls attention to the multiple manifestations
of harassment and violence against women in the political sphere and urge to
prevent, address and punish these crimes. It recognizes the need to make
progress on a definition on political violence and/or harassment against
women, taking into account the debates on the subject in the international and
regional levels. Following this work, the Committee of Experts approved in
2017 the Inter-American Model Law on the Prevention, Punishment and
Eradication of Violence against Women in Political Life29.
In 2014, the MESECVI worked on a set of indicators and elaborated a
Practical Guide to the System of Progress Indicators for Measuring the
Implementation of the Belém do Pará Convention30 allowing States Party and
27 MESECVI, 2017. Hemispheric Report on Sexual Violence and Child Pregnancy in the
States Party to the Belém do Pará Convention. Available at:
https://www.oas.org/en/mesecvi/docs/MESECVI-EmbarazoInfantil-EN.pdf 28 MESECVI 2015, op. cit. 29 MESECVI 2017, op. cit. 30 MESECVI 2014, op. cit.
27
other relevant stakeholders to standardize the data collection work. This
Guide aims to strengthen knowledge on the use of indicators developed to
measure the impact of the implementation of this Convention in the countries
of the region as well as to facilitate a more accurate measurement of the
extent to which States Parties implement the Convention.
The Third Hemispheric Report31 of 2017 is completely dedicated to the
prevention of violence against women and girls. It presents the progress of 24
countries in the region in the effective compliance with the obligations
assumed upon ratification of the Convention of Belém do Pará. With the
inputs provided by the States, as well as by 26 civil society organizations that
submitted 24 national and 2 regional shadow reports, the Committee of
Experts and the Technical Secretariat conducted an in-depth study of each
response in light of the standards established in the Convention in relation to
the following thematic axes: Legislation, National Plans, Access to Justice,
National Budgets and Information and Statistics, offering recommendations
to the States to strengthen the implementation of the obligation to prevent
violence against women contained in the Convention.
With regard to femicide, pursuant to the Declaration on Femicide of 200832,
in 2018 the Committee of Experts released the Inter-American Model Law on
the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of the Gender-Based Killing of
Women (Femicide/Feminicide)33. This Model Law seeks to provide an
integrating view of the problem and be a tool for States and stakeholders in
defence of women's rights, to enjoy the highest standard of protection and
interpretation when guaranteeing and demanding the rights established in the
Belém do Pará Convention.
In 2018 the Committee of Experts approved the General Recommendation
No.1 on Self-Defence and Gender-Based Violence34 which called attention
to the case of many women who have ended the lives or caused an injury to
their aggressors as victims of illegitimate aggressions in the sphere of their
interpersonal relationships, including the domestic sphere and those
defensive acts against aggressions of gender-based violence.
The Committee of Experts recognizes that in some countries of the region
there are high numbers of women and girls reported as missing. Because
this is a form of violence against women, as well as its connection with other
forms of violence such as femicide, trafficking in women and girls and sexual
31 MESECVI 2017, op. cit. 32 MESECVI 2008, op. cit. 33 MESECVI 2018, op. cit. 34 MESECVI 2018, op. cit.
28
violence, protected by the Convention, in 2018 it released the General
Recommendation No.2 on Missing Women and Girls in the Hemisphere35,
seeking to frame the disappearance of women and girls within the remit of
the Convention, and therefore, delineate the obligations of the States Party to
prevent, investigate, punish and eradicate this form of violence against
women and girls.
Prepared by Tatiana Rein, Chairperson of the MESECVI; with the support of
the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
35 MESECVI, 2018, op. cit
29
E. Group of Experts on Action against Violence against
Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO)
Mandate
The monitoring mechanism of the Istanbul Convention aims to assess the
implementation of the Convention by the Parties and to provide
recommendations for further improvement. It is based on a two-pillar system
encompassing two distinct but interacting bodies.
The first is the Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women
and Domestic Violence (GREVIO), which is an independent expert body,
composed of 15 members. On average, the GREVIO holds three meetings
per year. The tasks of GREVIO are to carry out country-by-country
evaluations. The Group may also launch special inquiry procedures based on
reliable information indicating a situation where problems require immediate
attention to prevent or limit the scale or number of serious violations of the
Convention. GREVIO’s evaluations are based on information received from
State Parties, non-governmental organizations and civil society, as well as
from national institutions for the protection of human rights. GREVIO’s
reports draw further from existing information available from other regional
and international instruments and bodies dealing with violence against
women and domestic violence.
The second body of the monitoring mechanism of the Istanbul Convention is
the Committee of the Parties, a political body composed of representatives of
all the States who ratified the Istanbul Convention. Once GREVIO’s reports
are finalized and published, the Committee of the Parties may adopt specific
recommendations on measures to be taken by States Party to implement
GREVIO's findings. The Committee of the Parties meets once or twice a
year, either at the request of its president, one third of the parties, or the
Secretary General of the Council of Europe. Between 2015 and 2019, the
The Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating
violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention)
was opened for signature in May 2011. The Istanbul Convention is one
of the most advanced legally binding regional treaty on violence
against women and domestic violence. It provides a holistic and
comprehensive legal framework to prevent violence against women,
protect victims and witnesses, prosecute perpetrators and promote
integrated/ coordinated policies in this realm. The Istanbul Convention
is a regional treaty open for signature and ratification by Council of
Europe member states. It is furthermore open to accession by non-
30
Committee held seven meetings. Since the launch of its first baseline
evaluation procedure in 2016, GREVIO has finalized its evaluation reports
on 13 States Party (Albania, Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Italy,
Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Portugal, Serbia, Sweden and Turkey).
Both the GREVIO and the Committee of the Parties have adopted rules of
procedure detailing their working methods.
The GREVIO contribution to the implementation of the Beijing Platform
for Action
The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action are one of the core sources
of inspiration of the Istanbul Convention, as underlined in paragraph 24.f of
the Explanatory Report to the Istanbul Convention. The relevance of the
Istanbul Convention to the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action lies
in the fact that it offers European states a blueprint for action to prevent and
combat violence against women and domestic violence. Because of the
global outreach of the Convention, it can also be of support to non-European
states addressing violence against women at the national and global level. It
was drafted with the understanding that measures to address the global
phenomenon of gender-based violence should not be limited to a particular
geographic area. Its provisions inspire normative and policy changes in all
regions of the world and all States can become parties to it. The Convention
and its monitoring mechanism can be used as reference framework and
provide a platform for international co-operation, review and exchange of
experiences that offer unique guidance in the design of national policies and
legislation. The Istanbul Convention addresses comprehensively the Beijing
Platform for Action’s area of concern on “violence against women” while
dealing with all other areas.
Since the entry into force of the Istanbul Convention, its impact in terms of
contributing towards the implementation of the Beijing Platform is
considerable. The following three achievements show its relevance.
Placing violence against women and gender equality high on regional and
national political agendas
As the first legally binding treaty in Europe addressing violence against
women, the Istanbul Convention has bridged an important gap in Council of
Europe member States and has contributed to keeping violence against
women as priority on the political agenda of the Council of Europe and its
Parliamentary Assembly. Moreover, the steps taken by the European Union
to accede to the Istanbul Convention has put violence against women on the
agenda of the European Parliament, the European Council and other EU
31
bodies, thus raising awareness for increased action to end violence against
women at EU level. Moreover, international initiatives such as the ones of the
Group of Seven (G7) have called for the need to ratify and implement the
Istanbul Convention.
At national level, the ratification of the Istanbul Convention has in many
instances prompted a wide range of legislative and policy changes, at times
leading to widespread parliamentary and public debate. While some of the
rhetoric used is intended to deliberately misrepresent the aims and scope of
the Convention, these debates are helping to shine a light on the experiences
of violence by many European women and the need to address these. The
monitoring process has revealed a high level of commitment of decision-
makers at national, regional and local level to improving the Convention’s
implementation. GREVIO’s findings and the recommendations issued by the
Committee of the Parties are generally regarded as offering constructive and
forward-looking guidance on how to deepen the level of implementation.
Offering an in-depth analysis of national laws and policies in the area of
violence against women, including gaps, challenges and good practices
GREVIO’s country-by-country monitoring process is the only process in
Europe offering a comprehensive evaluation of laws and policies on violence
against women at national level. State parties benefit from a detailed analysis
of legal measures in the area of civil, criminal and migration/asylum law and,
where possible, their implementation in practice. GREVIO’s assessment has
helped reveal shortcomings in the letter and spirit of legislation, insufficient
training of legal professionals on newly introduced legislation and overall
shortcomings in relation to the implementation of legislation and policy
measures. State parties are thus provided with detailed guidance on how to
further implementation of the Convention and can discern trends emerging in
other regions of Europe. This helps to facilitate the sharing of expertise and a
general improvement of policy and legislation in this field.
Creating a platform for dialogue to facilitate civil society’s vibrant advocacy
At the civil society level, the Istanbul Convention has become an advocacy
tool to facilitate the awareness-raising and policy change on violence against
women. Women’s organisations across the continent have embraced the
Istanbul Convention and its monitoring process in their bid to improve the
situation of women victims of violence and their children at national level.
Many examples exist of NGOs joining forces in submitting joint shadow
reports ahead of the evaluation procedure in order to speak with one voice
and offer shared insights to GREVIO. Often preceded by in-depth
consultations among NGOs, the aligning of positions regarding the level of
32
implementation of the Istanbul Convention at the national level has allowed
new strategic alliances and co-operations to emerge. Moreover, the Istanbul
Convention has been central to civil society’s initiatives and actions during
the 16 Days of Activisms against gender-based violence and on International
Women’s Day.
Prevention of violence against women, including domestic violence
The prevention of violence against women is one of the four pillars of the
Istanbul Convention. State parties are required to take a range of measures to
ensure the primary, secondary and tertiary prevention of all forms of violence
against women. From the monitoring work of the GREVIO, it emerges that
many state parties are in fact aiming to raise awareness of the different forms
of violence, but not necessarily in a comprehensive and continuous manner.
Efforts to address the needs of victims and their children by preventing the
violence from re-occurring (through perpetrator programmes, protection
orders, support, counselling, victim empowerment, etc.) are also being made.
However, the availability of funding for domestic violence perpetrator
programmes and pathways to their attendance seems lacking in many
countries, and the enforcement of protection orders frequently presents
difficulties.
Gender-disaggregated data collection and analysis
Systematic collection of gender-disaggregated data is essential to generate
evidence-based policy response to violence against women. Article 11 of the
Istanbul Convention emphasizes States’ obligation to support research as
well as the regular collection of representative and comparable statistical data
on cases of all forms of violence against women. To evaluate compliance
with the Convention insofar as collection of data is concerned, GREVIO has
monitored the systematic collection of gender-disaggregated data by law
enforcement, criminal justice, civil justice, health and other administrative
bodies. In its baseline evaluation reports, GREVIO has documented that data
were not always systematically collected in a holistic manner and that often
their scope was limited to some forms of violence against women.
Nonetheless, GREVIO has encouraged Sate parties to pursue their efforts to
gather data disaggregated by sex, age, form of violence and the type of
relationship of the alleged perpetrator with victim. From an intersectional
perspective, GREVIO frequently recommends conducting population-based
survey to assess the exposure to violence of particularly vulnerable groups
such as women from ethnic minorities and women with disabilities.
Education and training campaigns to raise awareness about violence against
women as a violation of women’s enjoyment of their human rights
33
Firstly, like the Beijing platform for Action, the Istanbul Convention
encourages States Parties to adopt measures in the field of education to
counter gender stereotypes that trivialize gender-based violence and
perpetrate the idea that women are inferior to men. The Convention
recognizes the crucial role that educational institutions can play in the
promotion of gender equality, mutual respect and non-violent conflict
resolution in interpersonal relationships.
Secondly, in line with the Beijing Platform for Action, the Convention
highlights the necessity to create sustainable training programs for relevant
professionals in regular contact with victims or perpetrators of violence
against women. To prevent secondary victimization, all law enforcement,
judicial, health, and educational staff should receive information on the
prevention, detection of gender-based violence, the response to victims’
needs and the respect of their rights. GREVIO findings show that many state
parties have engaged in efforts to include, in the training material for a range
of relevant professionals, the different forms of violence against women, their
dynamics and gendered nature and how to respond. Progress in this area is
very uneven, however, with some professionals trained more systematically
than others.
Remedies for women victims of violence: assistance, access to justice,
protection, reparation; accountability
The Istanbul Convention provides a comprehensive approach to ensure
remedies are available to women victims of violence. GREVIO findings in
this context show that many measures relating to access to justice, protection
and remedies are available on paper but that, in practice, their availability to
women in real terms is limited for administrative, technical or financial
reasons.
Prepared by Marceline Naudi, Chairperson of the GREVIO; with the support
of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
34
F. African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights’
Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Women in Africa
(A-SRWHR)
Mandate
The Special Rapporteur on Rights of Women in Africa was established by the
African Commission at the 23rd Ordinary Session, which was held in Banjul,
The Gambia, in April 1998, in recognition of the need to place particular
emphasis on the problems and rights specific to women in Africa. In its 25th
Ordinary Session, the African Commission adopted
resolution ACHPR/res.38 (XXV) 99, appointing the first Special Rapporteur
in May 1999 retroactively as from October 1998.
The Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Women in Africa is mandated:
To serve as a focal point for the promotion and protection of the
rights of women in Africa amongst the 11 Members of the African
Commission;
To assist African governments in the development and
implementation of their policies of promotion and protection of the rights of
women in Africa, particularly in line with the domestication of the newly
entered into force Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’
rights, relative to the Rights of Women in Africa and the general
harmonization of national legislation to the rights guaranteed in the Protocol;
To undertake promotional and fact finding missions in African
countries Members of the African Union, in order to disseminate the human
rights instruments of the African Union and to investigate on the situation of
women’s rights in the countries visited;
The African Union’s (AU) commitment for women’s rights is rooted in
the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African
Charter), which is strengthened by the Maputo Protocol. The Maputo
Protocol was adopted by the AU on 11 July 2003, in Maputo,
Mozambique and came into force in 2005. As of July 2019, 41 Member
States of the AU have made commitments to the obligation specifically by
ratifying the Maputo Protocol.1 This is an indication of the favourable
reception that the Protocol enjoys in the continent as the foremost legal
instrument on women’s rights.
35
To follow up on the implementation of the African Charter on
Human and Peoples’ Rights and its Protocol relative to the Rights of Women
in Africa by State Parties, notably by preparing reports on the situation of
women rights in Africa and propose recommendations to be adopted by the
Commission;
When appropriate, to draft Resolutions on the situation of women in
the various African countries and propose them to the Members of the
Commission for adoption.
To define guidelines for State reporting in order to bring Member
States to address adequately women’s rights issues in their periodic and/or
initial reports submitted to the African Commission;
To collaborate with relevant actors responsible for the promotion and
protection of the rights of women internationally, regionally and nationally
The AS-WHR contribution to the implementation of the Beijing Platform
for Action
The Maputo Protocol provides a comprehensive framework to guide all
rights-based action for gender equality and ensure the empowerment of
women and girls in Africa. It is celebrated universally for its various
innovations in women’s rights. These include the legal prohibition of FGM
and an authorization of medical abortion in instances of rape, incest, sexual
assault and where a pregnancy endangers the health or life of the mother. In
contrast to the Beijing Platform for Action, women’s right to safe abortion
has been accorded the highest human rights recognition. The Protocol is also
the first legally binding human rights treaty to make explicit reference to
HIV/AIDS. In addition to these innovative provisions, the Protocol addresses
issues such as violence against women, child marriage, harmful practices,
widowhood practices, women's inheritance, women’s economic
empowerment, right to property in case of divorce, separation or annulment,
and the political participation of women. It further affirms and protects
vulnerable and marginalized women including older women, women with
disabilities, women in distress and women in situations of armed conflict.
The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African
Commission or the Commission), which is charged with monitoring states’
compliance with the African Charter and its Protocols, has also put in place
various mechanisms and developed a number of standards to elevate attention
paid to women’s rights concerns. The Commission has taken steps to provide
interpretive guidance to women in Africa by elaborating on specific rights
36
while assisting states to fulfil their obligations under the Maputo Protocol.
Towards this, the Commission adopted its first general comment on women’s
right to self-protection and to be protected from HIV.36
General Comment No 2, adopted in 201437, further elaborates on the duty of
states to ensure the realization of the rights of women to safe abortion as
guaranteed by article 14 of the Protocol.38 This General Comment builds on
existing work by the Commission including the Campaign for the
Decriminalization of Abortion in Africa launched in 2016, to promote greater
protection and respect of sexual and reproductive rights of women. An
estimated 6.2 million women have unsafe abortion in the African region.39
The Guttmacher Institute estimates that majority of women of reproductive
age in Africa live in countries with highly restrictive abortion laws.40
Moreover, on February 8, 2018, the African Commission and the African
Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child adopted its first
Joint General Comment on Child Marriage.41 The Joint General Comment
seeks to clarify and elaborate on the nature of rights set out in article 6(b) of
the Maputo Protocol and article 21(2) of the African Charter on the Rights
and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC) respectively.
The Commission also adopted the Guidelines on Combating Sexual Violence
and its Consequences in Africa (Niamey Guidelines) during its 60th Ordinary
Session held in Niamey, Niger from 8 to 22 May 2017. The goal of the
Niamey Guidelines is to guide and support Member States of the AU in
effectively implementing their commitments and obligations to combat
sexual violence and its consequences. The Niamey Guidelines offer a set of
practical, specific and concrete measures for an adequate legal and
institutional framework. The Guidelines are now at the popularisation stage.
36 General Comment No. 1 on article 14(1)(d) & (e) of the Protocol the Protocol to the African
Charter on Human and Peoples ’Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, (2014). On the
drafting history and analysis of content, see M Geldenhuys, CK Kaufulu-Kumwenda, S
Nabaneh & K Stefiszyn. The African Women’s Rights Protocol and HIV: Delineating the
African Commission’s General Comment on articles 14(1)(d) and (e) of the Protocol. (2014)
14(2) African Human Rights Law Journal 681-704. 37 African Commission on Human and Peoples ’Rights“ General Comment No 2 on article
14(1)(a), (b), (c) and (f) of the Protocol the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and
Peoples ’Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa. 38 See C. Ngwena, E. Brookman-Amissah and P. Skuster. Human rights advances in women’s
reproductive health in Africa. 129 International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 129
(2015). 39 World Health Organization (WHO) ‘Unsafe abortion: Global and regional estimates of the
incidence of unsafe abortion and associated mortality in 2008’ (2011) 27. Available at:
https://bit.ly/30RsG3u 40 Guttmacher Institute ‘Factsheet: Abortion in Africa ’(2018) 1. See also Guttmacher Institute
‘Abortion Worldwide 2017: Uneven progress and unequal access ’(2018). 41 African Commission on Human and Peoples ’Rights & African Committee of Experts on the
Rights and Welfare of the Child. Joint General Comment on Ending Child Marriage (2017).
Available at: https://bit.ly/2RLdbpr
37
In addition, the AU in 2018 adopted its new Strategy on Gender Equality and
Women’s Empowerment, which seeks to maximize opportunities for women
and girls, ensuring their security, dignity and resilience, making laws and
institutions more effective and strengthening their leadership, voice and
visibility. This Strategy also promotes full implementation of women’s rights
instruments and proposes the development of a Programme titled “All for
Maputo Protocol,” which promotes the universal ratification, domestication
and implementation of Maputo Protocol.
At the national level, many gains have been achieved since the adoption of
the Maputo Protocol, not only evidenced by the number of countries that
have signed and ratified the Protocol, but also evident through increased
adoption of legislation addressing discrimination against women. For
instance, adoption of legislation in the areas of violence against women,
FGM and child marriage, sexual and reproductive health rights, marriage
equality and increased women’s participation. Between 2007 and 2018,
countries such as Zimbabwe, Uganda, South Sudan, Kenya, Guinea Bissau,
Mozambique, The Gambia, and Cameroon all have laws that punish the
practice of FGM. Either new laws have been introduced or existing laws have
been amended.42 Addressing discrimination through the law presents a
crucial starting point that eventually translates to substantive equality on the
ground.
Although the African Commission had previously issued rulings that dealt
with different manifestations of violence against women, including sexual
violence in the context of conflict, the case EIPR and Interights v. Egypt
represented a landmark, in 2013. This was the Commission’s first decision
regarding women's rights, finding that the State of Egypt had failed to protect
four women journalists from violence and in doing so violated their human
rights including rights to equality and non-discrimination, right to dignity and
protection from cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, and their right to
express and disseminate opinions within the law.
Given the role of the courts as the watchdog of other organs of government,
litigation plays an important role in the realization of women’s rights. It is
noteworthy that on 11 May 2018, the African Court on Human and Peoples’
Rights (African Court) issued a landmark judgment in the case of Association
pour le progres et la defense des droits des femmes Maliennes (APDF) and
institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa (IHRDA) v Republic of
42 S Nabaneh. Ending Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) by 2030: Harnessing National and
Regional Laws to Protect Women and Girls. Human Rights Brief (May 3, 2019). Available at:
http://hrbrief.org/2019/05/ending-female-genital-mutilation-fgm-by-2030-harnessing-national-
and-regional-laws-to-protect-women-and-girls/.
38
Mali.43 For the first time in its history, the African Court found a violation of
the Maputo Protocol. The Court held that the Malian Family Code violates
women’s rights as recognised under international law and ordered the state of
Mali to modify its legislation accordingly.
Prepared by Lucy Asuagbor, Special Rapporteur on the Rights of women in
Africa; with the support of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human
Rights.
43 Application No. 046/2016, African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (2018)
39
G. Inter-American Commission on Human Rights’
Rapporteur on the Rights of Women (IA-RWHR)
The IACHR is a principal and autonomous organ of the Organization of
American States (OAS) whose mission is to promote and protect human
rights in the American hemisphere. It was created by the OAS in 1959 and it
is composed of seven independent members who serve in a personal capacity.
Together with the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, installed in 1979,
the Commission is one of the institutions within the inter-American system for
the protection of human rights (IAHRS).
Mandate
The IACHR has specific mechanisms to address the issues of violence and
discrimination against women, such as:
- Processing of individual cases;
- Adoption of precautionary measures to avoid serious, urgent and irreparable
damage, like for example to protect women human rights defenders, in cases
of domestic violence and malnutrition and poverty;
- Requesting information from States through confidential correspondence;
- On-site visits and working visits to observe the situation of human rights or
to investigate particular situations;
- Statements to highlight both advancements and challenges in the region;
- Publishing thematic or country reports such as for example on the situation
of indigenous women;
- Convoking hearings to inform the IACHR about the situations of risk that
affect women, girls and adolescents.
The Office of the Rapporteur on the Rights of Women of the IACHR focuses
specifically on women’s rights and gender equity. Since it was established in
1994, this office has played a critical role in the Commission’s task of
protecting the rights of women. It has published studies on particular issues,
helped to develop new jurisprudence on this subject within the individual
case system, and supported research on various issues that affect the rights of
women in specific countries of the region, through its country visits and
thematic reports. One of the principles that informs its work and is reflected
in everything it does is the need to incorporate a gender perspective in the
40
planning and implementation of public policies and in decision-making in all
Member States.
The IA-RWHR contribution to the implementation of the Beijing Platform
for Action
The IACHR has identified both emerging and deeply rooted challenges for
women’s rights in the Americas, relevant to the 12 Areas of Concern of the
Beijing Platform. These include:
Lack of inter-sectional approach in addressing the rights of women and the
eradication of violence and discrimination against them
As the IACHR has consistently stated, not all women suffer nor are at risk of
encountering violence and discrimination at the same level. Some women, as
Afro descendants, indigenous, human rights defenders or migrants, suffer
violence differently or are more at risk to fall victims of violence based on
their gender, but also based on additional factors of vulnerability. As such,
the IACHR has established that States must take into consideration an inter-
sectional approach in all measures regarding the rights of women.
Women’s rights in contexts of institutional crises, humanitarian or
environmental crisis
The IACHR has found that in such contexts, human rights are at risk of being
violated, and in particular the rights of persons in situation of vulnerability
such as women’s rights. The IACHR has addressed these issues in the cases
of Venezuela and Nicaragua specifically.
Women’s rights in processes of truth, memory and justice
All Human Rights mechanisms have recognized that in such processes the
rights of women have been understated and most of the times, silenced
despite the grave violations that women are subjected to.
Corruption and human rights, impacts on women’s rights
The IACHR has found that corruption undermines the enjoyment of human
rights and, in particular, for groups in situation of vulnerability. In particular,
the IACHR has addressed the issue of the impact of corruption on the rights
of women and girls in Peru.
41
The IACHR, throughout the work of its Rapporteurship on the Rights of
Women and in the framework of its mandate, has addressed the key areas
identified in the Beijing Platform to achieve gender equality and protect the
rights of women and girls in the Americas. As such, the IACHR has
addressed the link between women’s rights and poverty44; issues dealing with
women and health45; equality in education, labour and family46; the
challenges for women’s political empowerment and participation47 and,
recently, the situation of the rights of women journalists and women in the
media. In particular, the IACHR has conducted extensive work in addressing
the relation between discrimination and violence against women, including
sexual violence, domestic violence and gender-based violence in the context
of armed conflicts48.
The Rapporteurship on the Rights of Women has also contributed to promote
the mechanisms that the inter-American system provides to protect the rights
of women by advising in the handling of precautionary measures and
individual complaints involving violations of women’s rights in the
development of a new jurisprudence with a gender perspective.
In addition, the IACHR has contributed to develop legal standards to address
violence and discrimination against women and girls. One of the most
important - and crucial – standards set by the Commission and the Court for
the protection of women’s rights in the Americas is the immediate obligation
of States to act with due diligence to prevent, investigate, and punish swiftly
44 IACHR. Report on poverty and human rights in the Americas. OEA/Ser.L/V/II.164 Doc.
147. 2017. Available at: http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/reports/pdfs/Poverty-
HumanRights2017.pdf 45 IACHR, Access to Maternal Health Services from a Human Rights Perspective.
OEA/Ser.L/V/II. Doc. 69. 2010. Available at:
http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/women/docs/pdf/MaternalHealth2010.pdf
IACHR, Access to justice for women victims of sexual violence: education and health,
OEA/Ser.L/V/II. Doc.65, 2011. Available at:
http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/women/docs/pdf/SEXUALVIOLENCEEducHealth.pdf
IACHR, Access to information on reproductive health from a human rights perspective, OEA
Ser.L/V/II. Doc.61, 2011. Available at:
http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/women/docs/pdf/womenaccessinformationreproductivehealth.pdf 46 IACHR, Report On The Rights Of Women In Chile: Equality In The Family, Labor And
Political Spheres, OEA/Ser.L/V/II.134, 2009. Available at:
http://www.cidh.org/countryrep/Chilemujer2009eng/Chilewomen2009toc.eng.htm
IACHR, The work, education and resources of women: The road to equality in guaranteeing
economic, social and cultural rights. OEA Ser.L/V/II.143 Doc.59, 2011. Available at:
http://www.oas.org/es/cidh/mujeres/docs/pdf/MujeresDESC2011.pdf 47 IACHR, The Road to substantive democracy: Women’s political participation in the
Americas, OEA/Ser.L/V/II. Doc.79, 2011. Available at:
http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/women/docs/pdf/POLITICALpart.pdf 48 IACHR, Violence And Discrimination Against Women In The Armed Conflict In Colombia,
OEA/Ser.L/V/II, 2006. Available at:
http://www.cidh.org/countryrep/ColombiaMujeres06eng/TOC.htm
IACHR, Access To Justice For Women Victims Of Violence In The Americas,
OEA/Ser.L/V//II.Doc. 68, 2007. Available at:
http://www.cidh.org/women/Access07/tocaccess.htm
42
and without delay all acts of violence against women, including those
committed by state and non-state actors.
A series of emblematic decisions issued by the Inter-American Commission
have set in place clear legal standards concerning violence against women in
the hemisphere as well as regarding due diligence, including two landmark
cases regarding domestic violence (cases Jessica Lenahan relating to the
United States and Maria da Penha in relation to Brazil).
Prepared by Margarette May Macaulay, Rapporteur on the Rights of women
of the IACHR; with the support of the Office of the High Commissioner for
Human Rights.
43
Conclusion
While the past 25 years have witnessed many positive changes in the global
context of women’s rights, they have also revealed the persistent and
systematic discrimination and violence against women that are deeply rooted
in the fabric of societies, thus becoming normalized.
It is within that context that the rise of popular movements, such as #MeToo
and #NiUnaMenos, and their various manifestations across the world, has
broken the silence on sexual harassment and other forms of gender-based
violence, while calling for change. At the same time, there is a mounting
opposition to and backsliding of women’s rights everywhere, including an
upsurge in retrogressive movements and a backlash against feminism, gender
equality and women’s empowerment. Within that context, the term “gender”
is also being misinterpreted as “gender ideology” and has been used to
prevent Constitutional and legislative changes in different parts of the world,
as well as to stall the ratification process of some of the regional instruments
like the Istanbul Convention. The rise in authoritarianism, populism and
fundamentalism have all had a negative impact on efforts to eliminate
discrimination and violence against women and achieve gender equality,
which can be perceived as an increasing trend of denying and challenging
international standards concerning women’s human rights and gender-based
violence.
All of the above continue to pose significant challenges to the
implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action and women’s human
rights instruments.
UN Member States and all other actors, including independent expert
women’s human rights mechanisms, must ensure that the progress that has
been made in placing the elimination of discrimination and violence against
women firmly on the international agenda as a violation of women’s human
rights and a form of gender-based discrimination is not lost, but upgraded and
regularly assessed at the each session of the UN Commission on the Status of
Women.
In addition, it is of utmost importance that the re-affirmation in the Beijing
Declaration and Platform of Action, and subsequent review processes,
recognize the indispensable role played by the seven independent expert
mechanisms and their fundamental contributions to the implementation
of the Beijing Platform for Action and other UN and regional
instruments.
44
This recognition should begin by taking measures to support and
institutionalize the EDVAW Platform, which is bringing together existing
independent expert mechanisms on women’s human rights. The EDVAW
Platform has offered a space for joint action vis à vis the challenges for
achieving gender equality and the elimination of discrimination and violence
against women. Institutionalization of the EDVAW Platform would also
provide a recognized space with which inter-governmental bodies,
particularly the Commission on the Status of Women and the UN system,
could engage and forge alliances.
Prepared by the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its
causes and consequences, Dubravka Šimonović; with the support of the
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.